Quito, Ecuador, Aug 2, 2018 / 16:51 pm
The National Assembly of Ecuador on July 31 unanimously upheld the right of parents to educate their children "in accordance with their principles, beliefs, and educational choices" without interference from the State in issues such as sex education.
The legislature's gesture came in response to recent rulings by the Constitutional Court, including a June 27 decision which takes away "the protective authority of parents" and gives it to the state as the outside guarantor when considering the "rights" of minors "in education and sexual and reproductive health."
Viviana de González, president of the Family and Future Foundation, said that the National Assembly's 70-0 ratification of parental rights is supported by Article 29 of the Constitution of Ecuador as well as the United Nations' Declaration of Human Rights.
"Although this political pronouncement by the legislative branch is not binding on the [recent] ruling of the Constitutional Court, it's a clear response to the citizens' public demonstration of a half million parents who took to the streets July 28 in more than 10 cities in the country," she said.